by M. L. Briers
Rick knew it was childish, but he couldn’t help silently mimicking the man. That was until he received a well-placed, pointy elbow in the ribs from his mate.
“Stop it!” Elizabeth leaned in towards him and whispered. “That’s not funny.”
Rick couldn’t help himself. He also couldn’t help taking in Elizabeth’s scent when she leaned in closer to him.
“This isn’t funny,” Rick whispered back as he motioned between the three of them.
“Act your age and not your shoe size,” Elizabeth hissed up at him.
“So, this is my fault?” Rick offered back.
“It isn’t anyone’s fault,” Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders and expanded her hands. “But acting like a stroppy nineteen-year-old…”
“How big do you think my feet are?” Rick chuckled.
“Huh?” Elizabeth frowned with confusion.
“You said act my age and not my shoe size — I don’t have size nineteen feet. I know I’m big — everywhere,” Rick gave her a cocky grin as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
“And that’s how I came to be here,” Robert announced. The trouble was that nobody had been listening to him.
“Huh?” Elizabeth noted that Robert was looking back over his shoulder at her and smiled sweetly at him. “That’s…”
“Unfortunate we don’t have space then,” Rick said as he rushed to her rescue.
“Unfortunate — yes,” Robert mumbled to himself. He could see that the man only had eyes for Elizabeth.
“Perhaps next time,” Elizabeth said, and Rick shot her a curious look. She gave a helpless shrug of her shoulders.
“Although, if it’s as busy as this then perhaps I’ll give it a miss,” Robert said.
“Probably a good idea.” Rick almost growled.
The enforcer did a double take when he noted that Elizabeth snapped her head around to glare at him. It was his turn to shrug.
“Be nice,” she hissed out in another whisper.
Rick tied an imaginary noose around his neck, tipped his head to the left, and poked his tongue out of the side of his mouth. His mate couldn’t hide her grin behind the berating glare that she offered him, and so she looked away before she chuckled.
~
~
~
“So, you’ve done it again.”
The sound of Chloe’s voice made Sarah jump in place. She was out with her little watering can tending to the plants in the pots around the inn before bed, and she hadn’t expected or heard the vampire’s approach.
“Jeez, Chloe. Could you not do that?” Sarah grumbled. She had an urge to zap her aunt but refrained.
“If your plan is to fill the inn and pack land with witches then you’re going about it the right way,” Chloe said as she inspected her fingernails and took little satisfaction in the fact that she’d scared the heck out of Sarah.
“One little elder is not a tragedy,” Sarah berated her.
“Two new witches,” Chloe corrected her. “And that’s just this loop.”
“There’s a loop?”
“Oh, there’s a loop, and then there’s loopy — namely your two elder witches, Dorothy and Angela. How many more elders must I put up with invading my home?”
“Were you always this grouchy or is it a side-effect of being a vampire?” Sarah smiled to herself.
“I’m not grouchy — I’m hungry — fancy offering up your…”
“Not even if your life depended on it.” Sarah hissed.
She still didn’t trust the new vampire as far as she could throw her. Aunt or not, the woman still craved blood, and witches blood tasted divine.
“Or maybe your life depends on it,” Chloe offered back.
“And this is why don’t get invited to tea,” Sarah berated her as if she was speaking to a young child.
“Really, I thought that was just your jealousy shining through,” Chloe offered back.
“Of you?” Sarah snorted a small chuckle of disbelief.
“I am far superior to what I was before,” Chloe lifted her chin in defiance.
“And yet you have no magic. What’s a witch without magic?”
“That’s not the point,” Chloe snapped back. She still missed her magic, but she wasn’t about to admit it.
“It is so the point.”
“No, the point is you’re not in the loop,” Chloe sneered.
“Go ahead then. If this loop is so wonderful, and I’m missing so much, prove it.”
“Two new witches – you practically have a coven going on.”
“One new witch.”
“Two.”
“No, it’s definitely one…”
“Rick found his mate,” Chloe announced in triumph.
Sarah stopped what she was doing and thought about that for a moment. The enforcer had a mate.
“It’s not an elder, is it?” Sarah grimaced.
“Wouldn’t that be a scream?” Chloe chuckled at the thought of it.
“Who is it?” Sarah frowned. She tried to think of everyone that turned up for the weekend. One woman came to mind. “Elizabeth!”
“Bingo! But no prize for you because you were so slow…”
“Well, I suppose there’s a symmetry to that. What with Quinn being Valerie‘s mate.” Sarah considered it for a long moment more. She’d never really thought about Rick having a mate.
The man was nice enough. But then she was the alpha’s mate, and Nathan could be growly as well.
Rick seemed a little rough around the edges, and a lot growly. But given that he was an enforcer it seemed about right.
She wasn’t sure if she should be happy for Elizabeth, or if she should be ready to commiserate with her. She decided to wait to see how Elizabeth reacted first.
“So, my question stands — how many witches are you planning to fill this place with?” Chloe asked.
“How many bachelors still left in the pack?” Sarah offered back. Although, she hoped that Dorothy and Angela would stop soon.
“I suppose I should be grateful — the more witches — the more snacks for me.” Chloe inspected fingernails once more, but she was more than aware that Sarah was offering her the stink eye.
“Don’t make me hurt you,” Sarah warned.
“Shouldn’t that be you begging me not to make you supper?”
“Yes, because her cooking is that bad,” Monty announced as he swooped in to stand at his mate’s side. Chloe muttered a curse under a breath and Monty warned her with just a look.
“We both know that’s not what she meant…”
“Families — you can’t live with them, and they won’t stay buried,” he offered back with a grin from ear to ear.
“Aren’t you supposed to be house training her?” It was Monty’s turn to receive the stink eye from Sarah.
“I’m not your mate,” Chloe announced. “I don’t need to be house trained.”
“Really?” Sarah asked.
“Really!” Chloe snapped back.
“Yum — tasty witch blood — nice and warm and flowing over your tongue. Can’t you just taste it?” Sarah teased her aunt and noted the way that her fangs started to elongate.
“I…” Chloe almost licked her lips.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
~
“Point made!” Sarah exclaimed, and Chloe snapped back to the moment.
“Unfair!” Chloe hissed.
“So true — I can taste it too,” Monty offered with a small shrug of his shoulders and an apologetic look for Sarah.
“And that’s why you two are out here, and we’re in there,” Sarah said with a bright smile of victory.
“Not right now, you’re not,” Chloe reminded her.
“Behave,” Monty chastised his mate.
“She started it,” Chloe huffed back.
“Well then be the bigger wi...” Monty bit off the word. “Woman and finish it.”
“I will — and she’ll taste divine.” Chloe sneered at her niece.
/> “Just try it, and you’ll be pooping fangs for a week.” Sarah meant every word.
“It’s always nice when the family gets together,” Monty groaned as the two women eyed off against each other.
~
~
~
“Well, I think this match-mating thing is going quite well,” Angela said as she tossed up a shoulder and motioned towards the new mates.
“For who — exactly?” Valerie offered back on a small frown meant for her mate.
“Well, I like it.” Quinn beamed her a wide smile. His eyes were full of amusement.
“That’s because you haven’t been put out by it,” Valerie reasoned.
“Gone are my bachelor days. Gone are the days of sitting around naked watching sports on a Sunday…”
“Don’t count your chickens…” Valerie shot back, arching just one eyebrow in his direction.
“But you found the love of your life,” Dorothy added.
“Yes, and we humbly apologize that it’s Quinn,” Angela offered the man of victory grin, and he snorted his contempt for her.
“What’s wrong with me?” Quinn’s eyebrows drew together, almost touching, and he grumbled a small, deep growl within his broad chest.
“We’ve been asking ourselves the same thing since we met you,” Angela tossed back.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He grumbled.
“Well, you are a little…” Valerie joined in leaving her words hanging in the air as she gave him a small shrug of her shoulders and looked anywhere but at her mate for fear that she would snigger.
“A little what?” Quinn took the bait.
“So many words — so little time before senility kicks in,” Angela said.
“I’m not that bad,” Quinn grumbled another growl.
“You’re not that good either,” Dorothy offered.
“And you?” Quinn turned his attention towards his mate. “Shall I turn my back while you stick the knife in as well?”
“No-no, I think I can manage that from here,” Valerie smirked.
“See — this is the problem when witches get together – mischief — always mischief,” Quinn growled.
“I think you’re confusing mischief with telling the truth,” Angela said.
“You’re a hard woman, Angela.” Quinn’s eyebrows reached for each other as he frowned hard at the witch.
“I thought she’d gone quite squishy in her old age,” Dorothy said and received a hard glare from her friend in return.
“Squishy?” Angela offered the woman nothing but contempt.
“It’s a better word than portly.” Dorothy lifted her chin in defiance.
“Portly?” Angela gave a small shake of the head in disbelief. “Who says portly?”
“Who says squishy?” Quinn offered.
“Who says mates are a good thing?” Valerie muttered.
“I do!” Quinn offered back.
“You would. You’re a man,” Valerie said almost with a sigh.
“What does being a man have to do with mating?” Quinn looked confused.
“Do you want to give Quinn the birds and bees speech, or should I?” Angela asked Dorothy as she nudged her friend’s arm with her elbow and knocked it from the countertop. Dorothy pitched forward before she called herself on a grumble of annoyance.
“That’s not what I was asking, and you know it!” Quinn growled back.
“I think the man doth protest too much,” Dorothy said with a sparkle of amusement in her eyes.
“Deflecting,” Angela said as she dismissed him with a shrug of her shoulders.
“I’m not protesting or deflecting…” Quinn growled.
“Procrastinating?” Angela offered.
“Oh, good one,” Dorothy offered.
“Thank you. I liked it,” Angela chuckled.
“Nor am I procrastinating,” Quinn grumbled.
“You know, there are little blue pills for that sort of thing,” Dorothy said with a look of sympathy for the man.
“What sort of thing?” Quinn was confused. He heard the small, muted chuckle of his mate and tossed her a curious look.
Angela lifted her hand, pointed her index finger at him, and then hooked it downwards. It took Quinn a moment to catch up, but when he did, there was a low deep growl that brewed within his chest.
“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.” Dorothy offered, trying not to laugh at the look on Quinn’s face.
“A lot of men your age have that problem,” Angela said.
“My — I don’t have that problem!” Quinn bit out.
“How do you know until you try?” Angela grinned.
“Protesting again…” Dorothy rolled her eyes for Quinn’s benefit.
“Well, that makes life easier…” Valerie said.
“Easier!” Quinn looked at his mate as if she just grown another head.
“Less messy?” Valerie teased the man.
“Disappointing…” Angela sighed.
“Dissa…?” Quinn started, but Dorothy cut him off.
“Well, it can’t be helped — or maybe it can.” Angela shrugged. “Maybe some vampire blood would help.”
“Help?” Quinn growled.
“Yes, dear. We’ll try our best; maybe we can find a spell…” Dorothy said.
“There must be one,” Angela reasoned.
“But do we really need one?” Valerie put in her two pence worth. “Let’s not go nuclear on my account.”
“Now hold on…” Quinn growled. “Nuclear?” Quinn swallowed hard. He certainly didn’t want the witches spelling his manhood.
“It shouldn’t hurt much,” Angela said with a small shake of the head.
“Hurt?” Quinn couldn’t seem to swallow the lump in the back of his throat.
“Define much?” Dorothy looked to Angela because Quinn’s face was a picture of horror.
“He’s a tough guy — he can handle pain,” Angela offered back.
“I can?” Quinn bit out.
“Oh, you can’t?” Angela wasn’t sure how she kept a straight face. Especially, when she caught sight of Valerie practically looking as if she was going to burst because she was trying to hold back the laughter.
“I — I — can!” Quinn looked confused once more. “I think.”
“You think?” Dorothy looked for confirmation.
“Not right now.” Quinn’s eyes were going from side to side as he sought answers to a million questions that were going through his mind.
“Well, that’s the most honest thing you’ve said since you got here,” Dorothy tossed back.
“It is?” Quinn was more than confused. He couldn’t have been more than confused if his wolf had been chasing its tail all night. He even felt a little hot and dizzy.
“Now back to your little problem, and when I say little…” Angela offered a wiggle of her pinky finger.
“That’s not…” Quinn spluttered a chuckle of disbelief.
“My, you have a lot of issues,” Dorothy said with a sigh.
“I suddenly feel old,” Quinn grumbled a growl.
“Join the club,” Valerie bit out on a chuckle that she couldn’t hold back.
“And confused — old — and very confused.” Quinn looked for answers in the bottom of his coffee cup.
Three elder witches chuckled into their cups. Their eyes were full of mischief as they looked to each other over the rims.
~
~
~
“Do you smell that?” Chloe asked as she lifted her chin and scented the air.
“The one who smelt it dealt it.” Monty offered back.
Chloe offered her mate an elbow in the ribs. The force of the blow doubled Monty over and made him groan with the pain that screamed through his body.
“Vampires — no sense of humor,” Sarah said as she folded her arms and eyed her aunt for a long moment.
“Human,” Chloe announced.
“Bloodsucker,” Sarah tossed back.
/>
“Not you.” Chloe rolled her eyes. “A human male — coming this way.”
“Are you sure?” Sarah frowned.
“Are you serious?” Chloe tossed back.
“She’s right,” Monty said as he pulled his body upright and grimaced in pain. “Bloody annoying, and with pointy elbows — but right.”
“And he’s coming this way with Rick,” Chloe added with a superior look for her niece. “Hmm – supper time.”
“What?” Sarah exclaimed.
“Well, you only said I couldn’t eat the witches,” Chloe shrugged with a grin of victory over her niece.
“Or the humans!” Sarah scowled back at her.
“Can’t change the rules now,” Chloe called back over her shoulder a moment before she disappeared.
“Monty, you’d better put her on a leash,” Sarah said.
“I know – I know.” Monty waved an absent hand in the air. “And you have to admit that she is getting better.”
“Better? Why are you still standing here?” Sarah demanded.
“Would you believe I prefer your company to chasing down my mate when she’s frothing at the mouth?”
“Yes. But that’s not the point,” Sarah bit out as she lifted her hand and pointed an index finger into the darkness of the night. “Fetch!”
“Still confusing me with your mate.” Monty tossed back before he disappeared.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
~
Rick caught Chloe’s scent on the air a moment before he caught sight of her off to the left. She was moving way too fast to pass as human.
“Oh, would you look at that?” Rick pointed to nothing at all in the other direction.
“What?” Robert asked as he stared off in the direction that Rick was pointing.
“Shooting star — guess you missed it.” Rick lied.
He was trying to track Chloe’s movements, but his mate’s curious look caught his attention, and he tossed up his hands in frustration.
“What are you…?” She started to ask in a whisper that only he could hear.
“Vampire.” Rick leaned in and whispered back.
“Oh, that’s not good,” Elizabeth said, a little louder than she had hoped for and drew Robert’s attention towards her.